Improvement in apparatus poe obtaining oil from wells



@niet was femur @faire IMPROVEMENT IN APPARATUS FOR OBTAINING OIL PROM WELLS.

SPECIFICATION. TO ALL WHOM IT MAY OONCERN:

Be it 'known that I, WILLIAM SHOUPE, of Saltsburgh, in the county of Indiana, and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain novel improvements in Oil Well Machinery; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full,` clear, and exact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, making a part vof this speciiication, in which- Figure 1 is a sectional view of an oil well, showing my improved arrangement of oil and gas pipes, the latter communicating with the re chamber of asteam boiler.

Figure 2 is a sectional view of an oil tank applied to a steam boiler which is adapted for burning oil. Figure 3 is an enlarged sectional view of the pump and gas pipes, showing the manner of' sustaining them lat the top of the well, and also of conducting oft' the accumulated gas from the well.

Figure 3 is the upper end of a pipe which is used in wells where the oil flows spontaneously.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the several gures.

This invention relates to certain improvements in oil well machinery, intended for wells which require pumping, or for those which ilow spontaneously.

The object of my invention is lto provide for conducting off the gas from wells during the operation of pumping, so that-the gas shall not interfere with the operation of the pump, nor keep' the oil back in the well, and to employ this gas in a perfectly safe manner as fuel f r the steam boileroi` the engine which is used to work the pumps, as will be hereinafter described.

Another object'of my invention is to employe concavo-convex cap for the upper support of' the outer tube, in such manner that this cap shall form an air-tight chamber at the top of the well and surrounding the pump tubo and admit of the Y gas arising from the well being conducted oii, and also the introduction of air .or water into the well whenever-desired, for the purpose of causing the oil to iiow freely through the pump-tube during the working of the pump, as will be hereinafter described. K

Another object of my invention is to provide'- for safely using the gas which escapes from the well for fuel, beneath the b'ciler ofv the engine which operates the pump. v

Another object of my invention is to provide by means kof seed bags or their equivalents and a perforated casing for the pump-tube, for conducting oil from veins at different depths in the well, into the main reservoir in the well from which the oil can b'e elevated by the pump, as will be hereinafter described.

y To enable others skilled in the art to understand my invention, I will describe its construction and operation. v

In the accompanying drawings, A represents lthe oil well, into which a pipe, B, is first introduced, extending down to the fissure or reservoir in the earth, but not dipping into the body of oil therein. y

This pipe is rmly secured -at its upper end to the centre of a shallow cup or flange,V C,-which is suitably supported at the top of thewell.

. The pipe, B, istapped at as. many points as may be found desirable for the purpose of allowing oil from small veins, whichmay run into the well atdiiferent distances from its top, to iiow into this pipe and run down into the main reservoirlat its lower end. i

To eiectA this object successfully, I employ seed bags, a a a, or other suitable packing Aas shown in figure 1, for cutting oli' the iiow of water, but forming communications with the interior of the' pipe, B, through holes b b that are made through this pipe. A seed bag or otherl suitable packing will be forced down nearly to the bottom of the pipe, B, first, then another seed bag willbe forced down to a point which is just above a vein of oil, and if it is found that other veins lead into the well abovel the first one other seed bags are introduced, and in this way large quantities of oil can be 'saved which would be lost, at the same time the water from upperjstrata can be kept back.

The'pump-tube, D, is vsomewhat smaller in diameter than'the casing, B, so that when it'isiintroduccd into this casing, a space, c, will be left around-it for the iniiux of oil through the perforations through the casing, and also for the free ascent of gas from the well. I This pipe, D,is secured permanently to thecentre of a dome',y E,

.which has a base thatis nearly equaliinvldiameter to the base cup, C, upon which4 it rests, as shown in iigureslV v and 3.

This dome, E, serves as a means forvcenteringand supporting the pump-tube, D, and also, as a chamber in which the gas arising from the well between the pipes and D is' collected.

This dome is rendered air-tight by means of a gasket, g, of rubber or other suitable substance placed beneath the edge of said dome, as shown in igure 3. The pipe or tube D leads downl `into the oil in the well, and it is provided with suitable pumping contrivances for elevating the oil to any desired height. A pipe, F, is applied' to the dome E, so as to form a communication between the interior thereof and the furnance chamber G G of the steam boiler G', for the purpose of utilizing the gas escaping from the dome E by employing it as fuel in said furnance. Toprovide against accidents, I employ a check-valve e and a stop-cock f in said pipe F. The cock f is usedfor regulating the escape of the gas, and the' valve e is used to prevent' the return of any gas which may have passed through ,its oriiice, thus preventing fire from communicating with th gas in the chamber or dome The pipe F leads directly through the side of the furn'ance-wall and the gas is burned beneath the boiler. On the opposite side of the boiler a'pipe, h, leading from an elevated reservoir, h', of' oil is conducted through the furnace-wall so a's to discharge oil into a tank, H, beneath the boilers. The pipe h is provided with a'cock-, by which the iiow of oil into the tank can be regulated or when desired entirely cut-olf. Other provisions .may -be made in the furnace-chamber for economically burning the gas and oil, or one or the other, which it-is not necessary for me to describe, as the simple plan shown in the drawings, gures 1 and 2, will answer a very good purpose.

The dome E is also provided with a cock J for admitting water into the well when thepumps cease to work on account of ,a sudden' fall or exhaustion of the oil in the well. A funnel J shown in gure 3, is applied to the pipe J, andwater poured into the well`unti1the pump can be started, when the funnel is removed and the valve or cock closed so as to prevent the escape of gas at this point.

It is not necessary to provide meansfor securing the dome E down upon the flange (Il of the outer casing B, as the weight of the pipe D will be sufficient to keep the dome down firmly in its seat, and the gasket will render the joint air and gas proof.

It is intended by my invention to employ a fluid, viz: oil and a gas as thefuel for the steam boiler of the engine which operates the pumps, and to connect the gas pipe and the pipe from the oil reservoir -withthe boiler furnace, so that both the oil and gas can be used together; and should the gas lcease to ilowfrom the well,tl1en more oil can be supplied by means of the stop-cock. i

When rich gas is iowing freely from the well, a less amount of oil`,will be required to keep upv the desired temperature beneath the boilers, and in proportion as the iiofw of gasdiminishes, the iiow of oil must be increased,

I contemplate employing that part of my invention which relates to the arrangement of several seed bags around the outer perforated casing B, yin obtaining salt waterfrom'saline wells for the purpose of collecting all the available salt from diiferent veins which the well may intersect, and at the same time keeping back the fresh water from upper strata. V

The method of sealing the top of the well-tubes by means of Aa Ydome E, may bev used for salt wells but this is not essential for the purpose. K

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new,- and desire to secure by Y,Letters Patent is 1. In combination with the well pipesA and D, and a chamber E, I claim the gas pipe F, having a safetyvalve applied to it, substantially as described.` l

2. Sustaining the pump tube D in the well by means of a self-sealing dome E, or its equivalent which `forms a chamber at the top ofthe well rcommunicating with the gas space between the two pipes B and D, substantially as described. y

3. The inlet .T applied to the dome E, for admitting of the introduction of water into the well, substantially as described. i

4. The means substantially as herein. described, whereby oil is allowed to flow into the outer casing B, at points intermediate between the packing, and at the same time the surface water is kept back and not allowed to iow into the well. 1 1 A In combination with a casing B, which is perforated at suitable points, and which encloses the pumptube D, I claim the chamber E, and an outlet pipe which is provided with a safety-cock or valvesubstantially as described. i

WILLIAM SllO'UPE.-V

Witnesses:

HAIL CLARK, SAMUEL TAYLOR. 

